thisendoftheswamp

The Episcopal Bishop of Washington offered a prayer on behalf of the president, asking him to be merciful to members of the LBTGQ community.

He posted on Truth Social (which is neither) that she had insulted him, and demanded an apology. She is also a horrible person, a trump-hater and a Democrat.

Which, coming from him, are compliments in my book.

Quote without comment

A bill was introduced in Congress today to dissolve the Department of Education.

My standard answer whenever someone asks me how I’m doing is, “Not bad for an old lady.” Some people nod and agree with me, others tell me I’m not old, and others ask me how old I actually am. When I say I’m 82 I’ve been told I don’t look my age often enough I’m beginning to believe my own publicity.

We had a service of Lessons and Carols today at Resurrection, with a guest organist whom I remembered from the last time he played for us – Easter, I think. We’d had a version of the above conversation, and I had told him my skin care routine. Cold cream twice, and wash with Noxzema.

When I shook his hand and told him it was good to see him again, he took a moment to place me, and then his face lit up. “I remember you! You’re the really old lady!”

Thanks a heap, kiddo, but I guess to a 25-year-old – if that – I guess somebody my age is really old.

I believe it was Shakespeare who said troubles never come as a single spy, but as hoards.

Where do I start? First, Comcast told us we could not keep our old phone number, then they relented, but more came back once more and said Absolutely not. So – we contacted Vonage, which was more or less our plan from the beginning. Except that Comcast has so far refused to release our number so Vonage can pick it up. The Squire went to the Comcast office on Thursday to pound on a couple of desks. The sweet young thing to whom he spoke suggested that we could change the phone number on one of our cell phones to the old landline number, which went over about as well as one could expect. She was even less help with getting this mess cleared up.

After totaling the Kia, the Squire did find an SUV which he liked very much and picked it up about 10 days ago. Today, while we were getting gas, he cut a corner too close – the new car is longer than the old one – and scraped the rear fender on the passenger side, leaving a nasty red gash. I thought he was going to cry, and I can’t say I blame him.

Ever since we moved, my computer will not allow me to access links. I can get to my email, but if somebody sends me a link to a site, I can’t go there. I need to change the address on my driver’s license, and I can’t get to the DMV site. Today, my computer decided I didn’t need my email, either, so now I have a very large anchor on my side of the desk. Then, The Squire’s computer decided to join his sibling’s game, so if I owe anybody a letter, that’s where we stand with things. Actually, I’m writing this post on the off chance it will actually be posted.

The Squire needs surgery and given his age that required a visit to a cardiologist, which was taken care of a few weeks ago. Yesterday he got a phone call from the surgeon’s office saying they have not received the report. Of course, by the time he got the message, the cardiologist’s office was closed, so that’s on hold.

Baltimore Gas and Eclectic Company has a buy-back program, where they take old refrigerators, freezers, and window a/c units, as long as they are in working condition, and send you a check for them. The going rate is $50 for fridges and freezers and $25 for each a/c. The guys showed up on Tuesday, but their work order only showed the kitchen fridge. I was more than a little upset, but there’s no point in fussing with the driver and his crew, but even they admitted it wasn’t very likely that I would have only mentioned one item when I had five. Another reschedule, and another day waiting at the house for somebody to show up.

If you read in the paper about some little old lady running amok in Joppa, it’s probably me.

 About 3,400 voters in a key Georgia county received their mail-in ballots just days ago, or not at all — and on Monday, the state’s Supreme Court reversed a lower court’s ruling that gave them extra time to get their ballots in.

Does anybody else see something fishy in this? r maybe Dejoy-ful?

Eldest Daughter flew up from SC and she and her best friend came over on the 22nd to help us finish packing up. Those two hit the living room like a whirlwind! In less than two hours they had the place cleared out, with all the boxes stacked along the wall.

The movers came around 10:00 on the 23rd. While the girls and I went up to the condo, I left The Squire at the house to direct things down there. I told him what needed to come to the condo, and the movers brought stuff we didn’t need and left other things behind. The biggest thing was a 10 x 12 Karastan carpet that is still in the bedroom but belongs in the condo dining room. It weighs a ton, and I did not exactly leap for joy at the suggestion we leave it behind. I think I’m going to have to call the mover and ask him what he’s charge just to move that one thing.

So – with all of that going on, The Squire was driving up from the house to the condo in the van with a load of boxes and managed to rear-end a pickup truck. To be honest, the truck driver slammed on his brakes and The Squire didn’t have enough time to stop, but that doesn’t change the fact that we are now down one small car. The accident happened around 6:00 on Thursday. The Squire called the insurance agency early on Friday, and they sent somebody to look at the van on Monday. Things went rapidly downhill from there. Apparently, Erie has moved a lot of their business operations to NC, and outsourced other things to Heaven knows where. We do know that somebody came and looked at the van, but obviously that information was not relayed to us. The accident was a week ago today and we still have NO idea what’s going on, and neither does our agent! The car is still on the mechanic’s lot, and no decision has been made about trying to repair it, or junk it or whatever. The Squire did talk to a nice lady in NC, and she was the same attitude we do.

And now we are doing battle with Comcast. After telling us repeatedly that we couldn’t keep our old phone number when we took the phone out of the house and plugged it in here, it works perfectly with the same number. We’ve had this number for over 50 years, and it is a nice one – easy to remember, and with a nice “rhythm” to it. Of course, threatening to go with Vonage might have had something to do with it. That being said we are still trying to get bother my computer and The Squire’s to work, and that poor man still doesn’t have a TV. We’re missed two weeks’ worth of Ghosts!

We won’t go into the agony of trying to fit all of our groceries, pots and pans, and other oddments into what seemed to be a lot more closet space than we had before. Yeesh.

I have no idea where all of these came from. They are obviously from Advent Wreaths Past, but Lawsy! how many years’ worth are there?

At any rate, I could probably light the Vatican – or the Washington Cathedral, at the very least.

All of The Squire’s family lives in areas that are flooded – two sisters live in Asheville, NC, and one in Newport, TN.

We did hear from his sister in Newport, and she said they have no running water or electricity. A friend brought her some bottled water, but she is “scrounging” water for her dog and to flush the toilet. the forecast is for more rain – oh, joy – tomorrow and Monday, so she will put out pots and pans to catch rainwater. It is impossible to get out of town; there are no bridges left, and most roads are blocked by fallen trees. Of course, if residents can’t get out, help and supplies can’t get in. She said she has plenty of food in her pantry and freezer, but no way to cook it.

Asheville is in even worse straits. One sister lives on the side of a hill, the other in a valley with a stream. At this point the cell towers are also down, so other than the news reports, we don’t have any idea what the story is there, but what we see is bad enough.

Pray for us all!